Autumn 1 Week 5

The weeks are flying by in year six and we find ourselves at the end of another busy, learning-packed week!

In English this week, we have been generating ideas for our final piece of writing - a diary entry in the style of Rose Blanche. The children have created questions to enquire about different feelings; analysed the grammatical features of our example text (with a big focus on using synonyms to convey meaning) and used 'freeze-framing' to capture the thoughts and feelings of a character. 

In mathematics, our focus has been on long division, specifically dividing four-digit numbers by two-digit numbers. It has been a joy to see the children persevere with this tricky skill and really become confident when working with high-value numbers. In science, we learnt about how the adaptations of the peppered moth, helped it survive and adapt to its ever-changing environment. We produced some excellent informative fact files to show our understanding of natural selection. 

Our geography work focused on learning about the features of the different types of biomes and discovering that some countries contain several different biomes. In art, we experimented with mark making, ready for creating our final piece over the next few weeks. 

On Thursday, on poetry day and to celebrate the official opening of our library, we were visited by a representative from Lancashire Library Service. We completed lots of book-based activities and quizzes which really challenged our views and opinions about books. 

Our last gymnastics session with Miss Estelle saw us creating our own sequences with elements of travelling, jumping, rolling and balancing. We performed our sequences in front of the class. 

Finally, in science, we focused on the story of the peppered moth and discovered how modern life and pollution contributed to natural selection. The children completed a fact file explaining how the moths adapted; what the term natural selection means and any other facts they found particularly interesting.

Autumn 1 Week 4

This week our learning in mathematics has had a division focus. After learning how to apply our mental calculation skills to division, we moved on to learning how to divide using the formal written method for short division. We plenty of resilience and determination show, we are now ready to progress to dividing by two digit numbers, next week.

In English, we have analysed the features of a diary, specifically formal and informal language. We have looked at our example text and generated a checklist, ready to use when we complete our own diary entry.

In shared reading, we have studied poetry from the book ‘The Final Year’. We compared different settings and lifestyles; we will continue this next week as well. 

Our geography work was all about interpreting climate and rainfall data in different biomes. We studied histograms, bar charts and line graphs to help us draw conclusions about different climate zones. 

In science, we conducted an experiment to help us understand how different birds have adapted their beaks to suit the environment that they live in. We made predictions, carried out the experiment and drew conclusions to back up our findings.

In art, we began to sketch out our ideas for our final piece of work. We generated numerous ‘street art’ ideas to share the message about our Meadowhead journey. It was inspiring to see so many different creations!  

 

Autumn 1 - Week 3

Week three has been and gone and it's been jam-packed with learning! We've been particularly impressed this week by the hard work and determination of many children as well as the children taking responsibility, showing honesty and maturity. 

In English this week, we have begun to look at the story of Rose Blanche, an ordinary girl from Germany experiencing the devastation of World War 2. The children have analysed vocabulary, made predictions, written a contrast poem about Rose and the soldier and have created their own complex sentences linked to this work. In grammar, we have focused on word class-particularly nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs.  We then applied our knowledge of this by identifying the different word classes in the passage from our Rose Blanche story.

Our mathematics this week has had a multiplication theme. The children have learnt the formal written method for multiplication, first by multiplying four digit numbers by one digit and then progressing this skill to multiplying three digit numbers by two digits. We will continue this next week before looking at division. 

In shared reading, we have been studying different famous women in science. Our reading has helped us learn about Katherine Johnson, Joan Beauchamp-Procter and Marie Curie by inferring meaning and retrieving information from the text.

Science this week has continued to look at adaptation in different animals. The children researched and created a fact file of adaptation for a penguin, a polar bear or a shark. They were then challenged to switch their animal to a different habitat and think about the adaptations that would be needed to help it to survive. 

In geography, we have continued learning about different biomes. We focused on how the lines of latitude on Earth control the different climate zones and the diversity of plants and animals. 

Our artwork was all about scaling up existing drawings to create larger versions. The children enjoyed the challenge of scaling up leaves, trees, birds and whales to create accurate and detailed enlarged versions.

In French, we learnt the names of different sports and how different verb tenses are used to create longer sentences. 

 

Autumn 1 - Week 2

It's been a busy week in year six and we've completed lots of learning. 

In English this week, we have drafted and perfected our 'Lost Words' poems, ready for display. With a focus on vocabulary and presentation, it has been a joy to see the children take such pride in their work.

In maths, we have been learning about the value of numbers up to ten million. We have also completed lots of mental arithmetic work, revisiting our knowledge and understanding from year five.  Perspective drawing was our focus in art. We created a vanishing point, horizon line ans scale line to help us create a city scene.

In geography, we looked at the position of different countries and linked this to biomes and climate. We learnt about how the tilt of the Earth has an impact on climate and discussed why places closer to the poles were colder than places nearer to the equator.  Science involved learning about adaptation and how a specific animal (the camel) has adapted to the environment that it lives in. In RE, we began to discuss how 'Life is a Journey'. Mrs Lawton and Mr Prescott shared some pictures from their past before we reflected on the key points of our lives.

For PE, coach Estelle joined us for our gymnastics lesson. She put us through our paces with some strength work before teaching us the skills needed to successfully complete a handstand and a cartwheel. It was tiring but fun!

Autumn 1 - Week 1

Welcome back to a brand-new school year! It has been a short, three-day week, but it has certainly been packed with purposeful learning and memorable experiences as the children kick off their final year at Meadowhead. 

In English, the children were introduced to the enchanting, nature-focused book, ‘The Lost Words’. We explored a selection of the book's acrostic poems, with the children sharing thoughtful opinions on how language captures the natural world. Alongside their written responses, the class produced some genuinely stunning artwork inspired by the illustrations. 

This week, we welcomed a visit from our swimming instructor to prepare the children for their upcoming lessons. Both year 6 classes will be taking to the water at different points during the Autumn term. Please ensure that your child has the correct swimming kit in school every Thursday. A gentle reminder that swimming is a compulsory and vital part of the primary curriculum. 

To cap off a brilliant first week, we headed down to Canalside for a full day of outdoor education. The children threw themselves into a wide range of activities, trying their hands at fire making, axe throwing, orienteering, and canoeing, as well as pond dipping and several energetic team games. It was a fantastic opportunity for them to collaborate, build resilience, and start the term on a high note! 

Summer 2 - Week 5

Last week we had ice-pops in the heatwave...

This week the weather has been a lot cooler, and it's been a different week for our year six children. On Monday and Tuesday, we focused on rehearsing our play ready for our performance in just over a week's time. We also started our 'Around the World' maths challenge: the children were set a task of planning a holiday around the world for their teachers, consolidating our mathematical understanding and drawing upon our geographical and ICT skills to create a presentation. This will continue over the next week: we look forward to seeing the children work as a team to present the teachers with their dream holiday!

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, the children had the chance to spend time at their new secondary schools for their transition days. We've been kept updated; it looks like they've had a truly amazing time! We are proud of how they have represented the school and themselves. 

Summer 2 - Week 4

We have had another action-packed week in Year 6. The children have shown incredible dedication, whether they were polishing their creative writing, stepping onto the stage, or diving deep into their history and science work.  

In English, the children successfully completed their highly anticipated flashback narratives this week. They skillfully combined last week’s atmospheric descriptions with clever transition sentences to seamlessly guide the reader into the past. Finally, they integrated their powerful amplifications before crafting a smooth transition sentence to bring the reader safely back out of the flashback. The depth of emotion and structural control in their final pieces is truly remarkable, and they should be incredibly proud of their authorial voices. 

Show preparation has reached an exciting new milestone this week as we have been working incredibly hard at rehearsing our performance. The children were finally introduced to the stage, which caused excitement and helped them understand how to project their voices and use the space effectively. It has been wonderful to see their confidence grow as they practice their lines, cues, and stage positions.  

Our History lessons took a creative turn this week as the children produced beautifully detailed double-page spreads exploring how crime and punishment has changed over time. They conducted a historical sweep across eras, investigating the harsh laws of Ancient Rome, the community-led justice of the Anglo-Saxon period, the notorious punishments of Tudor Britain, and the strict societal rules during WWII. This allowed them to compare and contrast how attitudes toward justice have evolved, resulting in some incredibly informative and visually stunning work. 

Finally, in science, we turned our attention to physics this week to explore the fascinating concept of refraction. The children carried out an investigation where they observed a horizontal arrow drawn on paper through a transparent glass of water. The children found it amazing that the arrow seemed to point in the opposite direction. 

Summer 2 - Week 3

Production rehearsals are in full force, and we’ve had lots to celebrate as we have seen the children’s confidence grow.

In English, we have continued writing our flashback narrative. We have composed transition sentences to ensure the flow between the paragraphs is clear to the reader and have also worked on improving our previous writing, in preparation for our final piece next week. Our shared reading theme this week has been poetry. We have looked at poems about ocean creatures and identified the themes, poetic features and identified new facts!

In maths, we have continued to apply our knowledge of addition and subtraction in a variety of ways to solve mental calculations.

In science, we have focused on reflection and how the angle of reflection impacts what we see. Previously, we learnt that light can not bend, but this week we found out that light can travel round corners with the help of reflective materials.

We’ve had a big focus in RE this week, learning about Jesus and who people think he is. We discussed our own opinions as well as learning about other people’s viewpoints from the Bible and in the modern world around us. 

We started our new history topic of ‘crime and punishment’. We learnt about how different crimes carry different consequences. We then studied the layout of a courtroom and the different roles the people in court have. The children were enthusiastic and inquisitive.

Summer 2 - Week 2

It has been an incredibly busy and productive week in Year 6, with the children showing immense focus, creativity, and curiosity across all their subjects.  

In science, we welcomed an exciting visitor for a hands-on Science workshop. The children were completely captivated as they took part in interactive experiments that brought our current science topics to life in a dynamic way. It was wonderful to see everyone collaborating so enthusiastically, asking thought-provoking questions, and testing out their theories.  

In Geography this week, our focus turned to the environment and the powerful global impact of young activists. The students spent time researching the incredible journey of Greta Thunberg and used their findings to produce incredibly detailed fact files. They explored how one person's voice can inspire a worldwide movement, analysing her speeches and the ripple effects of the ‘School Strike for Climate’.  

Our English lessons this week required the children to tap into some deep emotional maturity as we prepared for our upcoming flashback narratives. We worked intensely on uplevelling our vocabulary and sentence structures, practicing a technique called 'amplification' to add rich, dramatic detail to our descriptions. The students used this skill to describe exactly what a character would physically and emotionally experience during the chaos of a war. The resulting pieces of writing are incredibly moving, full of sensory language, and will provide a stunning foundation for the atmospheric stories they are about to write. 

Summer 2 -Week 1

Welcome back! I hope that everyone enjoyed a well-deserved, restful half-term break. This week, the children returned to school bursting with energy and ready to tackle the final few weeks of their Meadowhead journey! 

In English, we have started exploring the moving short film, ‘The Piano’, which follows a man reminiscing over the eighty years of his life. The children used their inference skills to piece together his history based on clues in the video. They then identified a rich selection of powerful adjectives, verbs, and adverbs, which they will use to write an atmospheric description next week. 

In maths, we are already looking ahead to the transition to secondary school by focusing on mental mathematical efficiency. We explored various mental strategies for addition, including partitioning, bridging, and compensation. The children wrapped up the week by independently selecting and applying the most efficient strategy to solve a mix of calculations. 

In geography this week, we explored natural resources in more detail, learning about how they are unevenly distributed across the globe. The children engaged in a mature discussion about this inequality. Many shared the thoughtful view that while nature ultimately dictates where resources are located, global trade should ensure fair and just pricing for countries that do not naturally have access to them.

Building on our previous knowledge that light travels in straight lines, the children gained an insight into how the human eye actually sees objects. They drew detailed scientific diagrams to illustrate the process, explaining how light travels from a source, reflects off an object, and then travels in a straight line directly into the eye through the pupil. 

Finally, in PSHE, we have been focusing on safety and, in particular, the risks of alcohol and information online. The children were able to identify the physical and emotional consequences of alcohol and evaluated the information provided by three websites to identify which would be the most reliable source.